August 8, 2024

Danni Wyatt Secures Season’s First Win for Brave

England star Danni Wyatt played a crucial role in Southern Brave’s rain-affected victory over Oval Invincibles, hitting an unbeaten 46 from 37 balls. Despite being dropped twice, Wyatt led her team to their first win of the competition with one ball to spare.

Southern Brave, chasing a revised target of 83 after rain delayed the start of the match, reached 85 for 3. Wyatt’s unbeaten knock ensured they overcame Oval Invincibles’ total of 79 for 4.

Lauren Cheatle and Tilly Corteen-Coleman, just shy of her 17th birthday, each took two wickets to restrict the Invincibles. Marizanne Kapp contributed 26 not out from 17 balls for Oval Invincibles.

Key opportunities were missed by Invincibles, who had Wyatt dropped on 4 and 14. Smriti Mandhana was run out cheaply, and Maia Bouchier was bowled by Ryana MacDonald-Gay, who impressed with 1 for 7 from her full 15-ball quota.

Danni Wyatt surpassed Nat Sciver-Brunt’s tally of 209 runs to become the leading run-scorer in this year’s women’s competition. As the match approached its end, Sophia Smale, the 19-year-old left-arm spinner, was given the task of bowling the final five overs. Smale managed to keep Wyatt to a dot and a single initially, and also limited Chloe Tryon to just one run with a smart stop. However, Wyatt used her experience to hit the winning boundary over leg.

Earlier, Lauren Cheatle took key wickets for Southern Brave, dismissing Chamari Athapaththu for a duck with an edge behind the stumps and then removing Alice Capsey, who had previously hit Cheatle for a six.

Rain interrupted the game with the home side at 38 for 2 after 35 balls, reducing the match to 65 balls per side. Tilly Corteen-Coleman took two crucial catches, dismissing Invincibles’ captain Lauren Winfield-Hill and Paige Scholfield. Marizanne Kapp then provided late hitting to boost Southern Brave’s innings.

Test Newbie Jordan Cox Shows Minerals to Take Oval Invincibles Top

In challenging conditions, Jordan Cox and Sam Curran led Oval Invincibles to a crucial six-wicket victory over Southern Brave in their top-of-the-table clash at The Kia Oval.

Tom Curran excelled with the ball, taking four wickets, while his brother Sam added two more. Their efforts restricted Southern Brave to 118 for 8. Despite Dawid Malan facing 10 consecutive dot balls and Chris Jordan not conceding a run from his first 11 deliveries, Cox and Sam Curran formed a 58-run partnership off 27 balls to secure the win with 15 balls to spare.

James Vince was the standout performer for Southern Brave, scoring 52 off 39 balls, but his efforts were not enough as Oval Invincibles edged closer to securing a place in the knockout stages.

Skipper Sam Curran has been key to a run of five wins in six games for Oval Invincibles. Although he earned his third consecutive Meerkat Match Hero award tonight, it was his older brother Tom who stole the spotlight with a brilliant 4 for 24 performance in front of 23,948 fans.

Southern Brave struggled early, collapsing to 31 for 4 as wickets fell regularly around James Vince. Sam Curran started strong, dismissing Alex Davies, while Tom Curran removed Andre Fletcher with a regulation catch. Will Jacks bowled out Leus du Plooy, and Laurie Evans was caught out by Adam Zampa, leaving Brave in a tough spot. Vince and Kieron Pollard tried to recover with a 58-run stand, but Pollard edged Sam Curran to give Billings his third catch.

Tom Curran nearly achieved a hat-trick, dismissing Jofra Archer and Akeal Hosein in consecutive deliveries, with Craig Overton just avoiding the fielders to get a boundary.

In the chase, Jacks hit the first ball for a six but soon fell to Overton. Dawid Malan managed a six but struggled to score otherwise and was eventually caught by Archer for 14 off 31 balls. Sam Curran and Jordan Cox then took control, with Curran scoring 35 off 18 balls before getting out to Hosein. Cox finished unbeaten on 46 off 29 balls, leading Oval Invincibles to victory.

Sam Curran, named Meerkat Match Hero, reflected on the win: “Huge win. The two form teams at the moment and a top of the table clash. We knew we had to win this to give us the best chance of going straight through to Lord’s (and reach the final).

“We have complemented each other really well with the ball this season. Towards the end we just had a swing and hope and it worked out.

“I’m really confident and enjoying the environment. I feel this team has got it right and hopefully we can do that for the rest of the tournament.”